Tuesday, November 23, 2010

It's All in the Family

It really is too bad that the time of year when you see your family the most is when weather is at its worst. At a family dinner last night, my brother made that comment and he and his wife contemplated starting a holiday during the summer that would gather the family together. That way, you wouldn't have to worry about the weather interfering with any plans you make. (theoretically.) I'm with you, guys. I'm with you.

But I have enjoyed seeing my family more often in the last month or so. Several of us got together last month when my folks were in town, and my cousin Ryan decided he liked the idea of us all seeing each other, so that evening he picked a date for us all to get together again.



(pictures courtesy of steph hodgwoman ... well, "courtesy" in that i stole them from her facebook album)

So a week and a half ago, all of us Utah-dwellers, plus some Colorado visitors, got together. It was quite the group, and it's just a given that when three of more of us on the Kelly side are together, it's going to be a loud evening. A very loud evening. But the volume is ultimately worth it when you're surrounded by people who love you and who you love. (awww...) What is especially fortunate is that Glen wasn't scared away by the decibel level of my family. He still willingly saw me the next day and everything! More daunting to him is the task of remembering who was who. Good luck!




And what with the major holiday coming up in a couple days, Tom and Lisa drove down from Oregon to spend a week with her family, so a few of us got together for dinner last night. Wasn't as big a group, but we can still make our presence known, even in a large sports "bar" (yeah, no one was actually sitting at the bar ... welcome to orem). Once I finish with work this week, I get to spend Thanksgiving up at Kelly's place, too, so that will be most excellent. Lots of family time. It's great.

-Me

"There is plenty of peace in a home where the family doesn't make the mistake of trying to get together." -Kin Hubbard

Friday, November 19, 2010

Spin It, Let's Begin It

Thanks to a certain youtube video, I have spent the last week or so getting various theme songs stuck in my head. (darkwing duck spent nearly the whole day with me on monday.) Childhood reminiscing can be pretty fun, when you realize what silly things stuck out to you and what your favorites were.

Barkley. I always wanted a big fuzzy dog like Barkley. He didn't appear a whole lot on Sesame Street when I watched it, but when he did, I smiled. (trivia: the name "barkley" was a consideration when jim henson and co. were naming rowlf the dog.)


Daniel the Tiger. Shy, soft-spoken, and sweet puppet in the Land of Make-Believe on Mister Rogers' Neighborhood. Although, I kind of think I just liked the clock that he lived in.


TaleSpin. Shere Khan as a business tycoon in those snazzy suits? Sheer (no pun intended) genius. Baloo as a hot-shot pilot? Niiiice. And (former king) Louie as a bartender? Excellent. Add in that catchy theme song and you've got a hit. (especially since there was no mowgli in sight.)


Adding to my nerdy nature, I'm including a Power Ranger. But not Tommy the "heart throb" or Jason the de facto leader. Billy, the blue Ranger. Totally my favorite. He had the geek thing going for him, and I loved it. ("geek thing" also explained donatello as my favorite ninja turtle.)


And going back to the Disney afternoon line-up, my favorite cartoon of those was Chip 'n Dale Rescue Rangers. Whether Monty was being lured by the scintillating smell of "cheeeeeese" or Gadget continued to be oblivious to Chip and Dale vying for her attention, I loved this show.


Of course, I didn't realize until later in life that Chip and Dale were modeled after Harrison Ford and Tom Selleck. Which naturally adds to their awesomeness.


-Me

"Somewhere on this globe, every ten seconds, there is a woman giving birth to a child. She must be found and stopped." -Sam Levenson

Friday, November 12, 2010

Smile

I know the following statement may come as a shock to my readers, considering how open I am about my life, but there are some things I am a little shy about sharing on this blog, even when I'm very happy about them. But, hey, since I have no problem talking about a lack of a dating life, I shouldn't have a problem talking about having one, either.

In other words ... Megan has a boyfriend. (insert big smiley face here.)

I do not use exclamation points because I am attempting to play it cool. (ha!) But if you want details and such, please feel free to contact me and ask, and I will most definitely be using more exclamation points as I share than you really wish me to. Okay, here are a few that just need to get out.

!!!!!

I feel like I should write more, but I'll leave it at that, and you may draw your own conclusions. ;)

Oh, also, his name is Glen. :) (sound familar, anyone?)

-Me

"What's the difference between a boyfriend and a husband? About 30 pounds." -Cindy Gardner

Tuesday, November 9, 2010

Cold Feet

It's officially cold. I'm wearing scarfs, sweaters, and gloves, and I used the rice bag last night to warm my feet as I went to sleep. (thank you again, becky!) It's a good thing I look cute in winter accessories; there's got to be an upside to bundling up. Gotta keep warm, gotta keep warm.

I moved into my new office last week! Hooray! No, not a promotion or anything; the space was just freed up. I was pretty happy about the move. Now I don't have to look like a deviant looking through other people's offices just to take a look outside. Granted, my view isn't incredibly amazing ... there's a nice cement wall ... but I can see the sky. Lots of fun new things in my life these days. It all adds up to me being amazingly blessed.

Last weekend I took a jaunt to BYU campus and attended the Women's/Men's Chorus concert. They both sounded awesome, and I did feel a tad sentimental when the Women's Chorus took their place on stage. Naturally, the people in the audience only ever truly come for the Men's Chorus, as evidenced by the numerous cheers that rang through the hall when their turn came around. They sang some beautiful sets, as well as finishing off with a rousing, riveting, and ridiculous set that included "I Know An Old Lady" (yes, the one who swallows a fly). Boys acting silly and singing (yes, i'm looking at you, glen) ... makes for a great end to a fantastic concert.

-Me

"Our pens have turned into ink-sicles!" -Rat Clerks in Muppet Christmas Carol

Wednesday, November 3, 2010

I Put a Spell On You


If my Halloween costume looks slightly familiar to my regular readers, it's because it is. I had no desire to go searching for a different outfit after the time I took to find a dress for the murder mystery dinner a few weeks ago, so I was just the 30's Hollywood star again. I got many varying guesses about what exactly I was, too. I was just too generic to be a specific person, but not generic enough so that people automatically knew what era I was representing. Oh, well. What matters is that my feet were killing me by 10 p.m. because I'd been wearing those heels since 7 a.m. ;)

Me and the roomies before hitting the parties

Only because I think this is adorable

The office has changed a lot this last year, so Halloween wasn't quite the spooktacular it historically has been, but that's all right. Still managed to drink my way through four cups of hot chocolate (the sweets fast ended two days previous) and tie with Sylvia for the best costumes, although I think she should have been the sole winner of the Swedish fish. The owl with the red cape alone put her Briar Rose look far above my costume.

"Once upon a dream."

 Cute.

That night, the roomies and I (plus paul) headed to a couple of Halloween parties hosted by friends in the ward, which were both very fun. (i especially enjoyed bronson and jason singing to the soundtrack of "dr. horrible's sing-along-blog". natural performers.) We finished the evening by watching The Scarlet Pimpernel (not exactly a halloween-ish movie, is it?), but I was so tired that I made it only halfway before heading to bed. Mmm, sleep.

Guess the Disney princess look is "in". Beautiful Jen.

Dr. Horrible, aka Bronson, agrees to a photo op.

Jason was a tad too realistic as a zombie.

 Oh, the humanity.

Maybe I'm childish this way, but I still have a lot of fun dressing up for Halloween. I generally decide at the last minute what I'll be, but it's fun putting something together and looking not-quite-myself. And I always love seeing what other people become. I think all my roommates looked particularly excellent: Betsey as Princess Lolly, Lisa as a fairy, and Sarah as Cleopatra. You all looked amazing, girls!

And Danny gets the prize for most surprising costume.

 Paul as the Goblin King, i.e. David Bowie, and Tiffany as Lady Gaga
How ... cute? (they looked awesome)

In other news, the old car has been sold! Don't worry, Lisa, I found it a good home.

-Me

"Peace! But not ... literally." -Dr. Horrible